


Even After Today, I Feel This Way

by gooseygoose



Series: when you smile at me softly [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, M/M, hat sharing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-31
Updated: 2019-12-31
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:53:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22045177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gooseygoose/pseuds/gooseygoose
Summary: Jaemin stopped walking and gave a full body shiver. Renjun frowned before making a split second decision.(renjun lets jaemin borrow his hat.)
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Na Jaemin
Series: when you smile at me softly [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1605496
Comments: 2
Kudos: 68





	Even After Today, I Feel This Way

"Hey, you okay there?"

Renjun jolted in his seat from his distant staring. But he smiled when he looked at his companion. 

"Probably not. I have never felt so dead." 

Jaemin grinned at that. He was wearing sweats and joggers today, not the usual Gangnam-Finance-Bro outfit he had going on. Renjun was also wearing his sweats, letting his undereye circles speak for themselves. 

Renjun wouldn't call them friends - maybe seatmates and study partners or acquaintances. He had Jaemin's number, and had added him on social media, but he never interacted with him outside of class related things. They met up a few times to study, but nothing beyond that. Jaemin, as Renjun learned, was quite active in clubs, lead a thriving social life, and put in a lot of effort into his business classes, and had the marks to prove it. Plus, he was super friendly. 

He still doesn't understand why Jaemin was in this class with him. When asked, he business student had shrugged and said it was to fulfill a requirement, but this class was way too much work for that. KRW426: Mythology in Korean Culture & Literature was not exactly something to take for fun. 

"But honestly, I think I sold my soul to the devil to finish." Renjun groaned. 

As it stands, his 43 page long, semester-end analysis of Son Oh-gong's character in Journey to the West and his influence on Korean culture and attitudes towards collectivism was complete. The last of his citations had finally been copied and pasted from the bibliography generator only 45 whole minutes before the 10am deadline. He hit submit exactly one minute later. 

It may have been the worst piece of writing Renjun had ever turned in for his entire college career, but he couldn't care anymore. His brain had melted, his body felt like a hunk of lead, and his arguments stopped making sense 8 hours ago. It took two sleepless nights and about a dozen trips to the convenience store for coffee. Currently, he was at the debrief held during class at 10:30am. The morals painstakingly instilled within him by his mother would not let him skip this class to sleep, or the two other classes he had that day, despite his soul whispering otherwise. 

He was surprised that the other was here; business students were notorious skippers, even though Jaemin has attended every class this semester.

"Same. I've been reading stories about demons and heavenly angels all week. Fuck, I wrote a whole ass paper on them. I can imagine how you feel." Jaemin agreed with a sigh.

But then he looked into Renjun's eyes with an intensity far too strong for this particular morning. 

"But now faced with a real angel, I can't help but regret selling my soul already. It's a shame it's not in your hands." He finished with a wink. 

Renjun's ears turned red, but he rolled his eyes. "That was weak, Na Jaemin. If you keep this up, you'll lose your title as the flirt king." 

Jaemin's laugh was bright in this seminar of dead eyed students. 

The professor shot them a look, and he hurried to sit down next to him. Renjun turned away - he doesn't know whether he'll ever stop being flustered by the flirting, even though Jaemin's been busting out these lines for the entire semester. They were cheesy and dumb and entirely harmless, and he was gonna miss them. 

There's a twinge in his chest thinking about how Jaemin won't be around soon enough. They're not in the same majors, and probably won't have class again together. The other kept him on his toes, and he really enjoyed his company. It's too bad they never got closer. 

****

The class went by painfully slow. The professor tried to get students to participate instead of blankly staring at her, or blatantly napping - even though it was entirely her fault. Over half of them weren't even here. Jaemin was sitting up straight with his eyes closed, and Renjun had been staring at someone's white coffee cup the entire time. She gave up eventually, and told everyone to make sure to come by her office during finals to collect their graded papers. Renjun might be the only one who planned on going. 

As Renjun slowly packed up, Jaemin nudged him. A full and sunny smile already on his face. 

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask," His grin was infectious, and Renjun was smiling back before he even noticed.

"Go for it, I don't bite." 

"Yes, you do. Don't lie Injun." Renjun's smile grew bigger. 

"Do you wanna grab a bite to eat? Tonight? I figured we could both use a treat after this assignment." 

Renjun thought about it for a second - it was a Friday, so it wasn't like he had to finish something up for the next day. And Jaemin was right, boy did he deserve a few drinks and a real meal. A nice meal for once. But, it did cut into the 20 hour sleep he had planned for. And Renjun was the tiniest bit stingy about spending money, being an international student on scholarship and all. 

But Jaemin's eyes were inviting and they were still smiling dumbly at each other. He was pretty certain Jaemin was just as tired as he was, but he's still inviting him out. And it's definitely worth a little time and money to celebrate. It's not everyday the most harrowing assignment of his undergrad gets turned in. 

"Yeah, definitely."

"Great! Wanna meet up at 6 in front the student union? I know a great barbeque place nearby that does a Friday 5-for-4 Soju deal. Full bottles only though." 

"5 bottles?! Do you want to die? I can't be held responsible if you do!" 

"I wouldn't mind dying if my angel was with me there. I'm sure you can take me to heaven." Leave it to Jaemin to take any and every advantage to fluster him. 

Renjun has to cover his face with one of his hands to hide the blush, as Jaemin looked on with great satisfaction. He used his free hand to try and smack him. 

"I changed my mind, I'll only come if you don't talk the entire time." 

"Okay, okay." Jaemin snickered as he tried to protect himself from the fearsome Renjun smacks, his warm hands coming to grab Renjun's smaller one to stop him. 

He waited for Renjun to finish packing up, and to put on all his winter gear and they walked out together to their next classes. The winter was on Seoul, and the sunlight was bright through the bare trees. The air was heavy with the cold and the dust, and it left their chest in visible puffs. They meandered through the walkways between buildings for a little while in silence. 

"Damn, it got cold." Jaemin's bomber jacket and joggers couldn't possibly be enough. His fists were deep in his pockets, and his shoulders were braced. Renjun was more prepared in a giant long padded coat, and a hat. 

"It's not that bad." He shrugged. 

In Jilin the cold came earlier, and enveloped the city in its harsh grasp for longer. Even though Renjun was no longer in that part of the world, the coming and going of the seasons remained unchanging even if the language and culture did. 

"You sound like one of those old geezers." 

"I'm just saying. You're underestimating me! It's worse in Jilin." 

" _It's worse in Jilin._ I bet you also walked to school, in a blizzard, uphill both ways, everyday." Jaemin ribbed at him, and Renjun nearly shoved him off the path. 

Jaemin stopped walking and gave a full body shiver. Renjun frowned before making a split second decision. 

"Here," He yanked off his own hat, and reached up to tug it over Jaemin's head. It was a snug fit. The gray knit was made by his grandma a long time ago. He helped her make the pom-pom on top - he chose a lime-green because he was really into aliens then. He still kinda was. 

"It's not much, but it'll tide you over to your next class."

Jaemin just blankly stared down at him. His face was a lot closer than Renjun was used to; he could see the darkness underneath those eyes, a few freckles and a few blemish scars. He looked exhausted. 

But Na Jaemin was still incredibly handsome. Renjun never noticed the sharp jaw, the firm chest, or those plush but chapped lips. Or honestly, how much taller and broader the other was. Everything sharp, except the cold flush on his cheeks, and eyes full of sweetness. It's almost unfair how good he looked.

That realization hits him out of nowhere, and his heart rate speeds up in tandem. Even though Jaemin's eyes were right there, still staring into him, he suddenly couldn't bring himself to make eye contact. Suddenly he felt self-conscious about his gross hair and the fact he hasn't showered in two days. 

Renjun steps away from him, looking at anything but Jaemin's face. 

"Ah, right. Um, this is where I go." His voice sounded a little high to himself, but he ignored it. There was fork in the path, where one of them headed to the business school and the other would go towards the other humanities building. Actually, its the next one over, but Renjun is pretty desperate to escape.

"Oh. Yeah." Jaemin seemed to have snapped out of his staring, and smiled at him. "This hat's pretty cool. The pom-pom suits you." 

"Thanks," Only then does Renjun manage to take a look at his face. "You look cute with it." 

"I don't think cute is the image I'm going for. I'm thinking more along the lines of dashing, or chic. I'm a business student after all." 

"Not with that hat on." Renjun tugs on the hood to his jacket, because his own head was getting cold, and his hair was full of two day grease. "Accept that you're cute with it." 

"But I think you're cuter." That makes him duck his head, and push back against Jaemin's shoulder. "Seriously, you look like a giant black sesame seed! I can't compete."

"You're pretty good competition, don't deny it. But, just give it back, okay? My grandma made it." 

Jaemin gasps dramatically, "Injunnie! To insinuate that I would ever condone such an act as stealing - I thought you knew me better than this!" 

He reached to the edges Renjun's gifted hat, and pulled it all the way down until they were over his earlobes and eyebrows. It was a little small on him, Renjun will have to tease him for his giant head later. But right then, he looked adorable with Renjun's hat, and it made his head feel light. 

"I'll give it back tonight. On our date!" Jaemin teasing grin only got bigger as Renjun's face got hotter, and wiggled his eyebrows. He started to bounce in place, still pulling the hat tightly over his head like an idiot. "I can't wait." 

Renjun has to look up at the sky for a second, very embarrassed and a little overwhelmed. Jaemin can surely see how red his face was, and he can't blame the cold. He was still sleep deprived and dead, and he's a little sure that Jaemin wouldn't go this far with his flirting if he wasn't mentally exhausted as well. 

But it was also very welcomed. He did after all wish he could've gotten closer to Jaemin. This wasn't how he imagined it would go - it was even better. He can't control how his face has this huge grin that hurts his cheeks.

"I'm excited too. Just make sure you bring it." His voice was a little small, and a little higher than normal, but Renjun made sure to make eye contact when he confirmed. His mother always said to look at someone when answering their questions. 

And Jaemin's eyes were filled with warmth and excitement, and it made Renjun giddy that he was just as excited as himself. 

"Have a little faith in me; I won't forget. See you at 6 Renjun!" Maybe he said it a little softer than he should have or it could just be Renjun's imagination. The other gave a little salute instead of a wave good bye, and walked off towards to business school. The pom-pom bounced with every springy step he took. He looked a lot less cold than he did a few minutes ago. 

Renjun stood around for another minute, smiling to himself. He'll definitely need to shower before dinner - before his date. Also, damn Na Jaemin, because he doesn't know if he can stop blushing before his next class. 

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. i don't know enough about korean mythology to be writing essay titles  
> 2\. inspired by that 3 second cut in the Dream Show concert outfit video where renjun puts a hat on jaemin 
> 
> i wrote this in the notes section on my work comp on the week of christmas when no one was in and i had nothing to do so it's a little choppy!


End file.
